Retracing Memories
by beeswarm17
Summary: Naruto and Hinata meet to reminisce on their memories of each other. But is it all just a distraction to avoid the real issue, or will they see deeper into each other's character from their mutual experiences? NaruHina with some light SasuSaku
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is my first fanfiction. That being the case, I would greatly appreciate any tips, comments, ideas, critiques, reviews, and the like. Thank you for your time.

**Disclaimer:** The characters in the story are not mine. This is fanfiction; we should be aware of this fact.

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_I hate this holiday._

The large ballroom was crowded with people, most of whom were dancing, and it was decorated with multiple shades of pink and red hearts, some dangling from the ceiling, others glittering on the tables around the candles. There were a few bowls of red punch on several of the tables, with small desserts on plates around the bowls. It was quite an impressive display. Most people would have been fully caught up in the Valentine's Day mood at the sight of it.

However, a certain blonde haired shinobi wasn't paying any attention to the decorations, the food, or the music that was slowly playing in the background. Naruto didn't care about any of it. His entire focus was directed at a certain pink-haired kunoichi, who was currently wrapped in the arms of a black-haired shinobi. Sakura was a girl that Naruto had had a crush on for several years. Sasuke was Naruto's best friend and had been his rival for years. And while it wasn't doing Naruto any good to watch them, he couldn't pry his eyes away from the pair. He was too pissed.

He wasn't exactly mad at them; he actually was a bit glad that Sakura had actually got her wish. And they both seemed really happy, as well. No, Naruto was more frustrated with the holiday in general. Holidays were usually Naruto's least favorite days; they always reminded him that he didn't really have anyone to share them with. He had no family and few friends. But on holidays, these friends always spent time with their respective families, so Naruto had nowhere to really go. He had started to spend them with his old teacher Iruka, who had taken up a role somewhere between surrogate father and older brother.

But Valentine's Day was different. It wasn't a day to spend with family; it was a day to spend with those especially close to you. Naruto didn't have anyone like that. He just sat on a bench by one of the walls watching his friends enjoy the company of their respective dates. He brushed some of his blonde hair out his face. Usually his spiky hair was restrained by his forehead protector, but since this was a bit of a formal occasion he decided to leave it off. _Not like anyone cares about me here anyways_, he thought to himself.

On the far wall to Naruto's left, a quiet, indigo haired girl sat on a bench, nervously fidgeting with her hands. She was wearing a light purple dress that went down to the middle of her calves. It was sleeveless, and it had a very subtle pattern in it. The dress was very slightly loose on her, but it followed her curves well. And curves she had. Much more so than most of the girls present at the party.

Her long hair fell down to about the middle of her back, and there was a jeweled clip in the back of her hair. The clip was decorated with a crystal flower, with purple gems for petals and a while gem in the center, and it was more for decoration than anything else. Her hair framed her face well, and it contrasted with eyes.

Her eyes were something special. They had no pupils and essentially contained only pale lavender irises. These eyes were generally focused down at her hands. Every now and then, however, Hinata would glance up at the blonde ninja directly in her line of sight and then her gaze would return to her hands.

She picked up a small, cube-shaped box next to her and started fiddling with it. _That's his 16__th__ trip to the punch bowl now. But who's counting?_ She smiled ruefully to herself. It had been close to six years since she acknowledged to herself that she was enamored with the boy. Though despite all that time, she still hadn't managed to tell him. It wasn't hard for her to see why she admired him; he was everything she wasn't. He was loud, confident, and capable of almost anything, yet he had been born an orphan and had been dealing with the angry glares of the adults in the village for years. She was shy, quiet, and severely lacking in self-confidence. She was the heir to the Hyuuga clan, the most powerful and influential clan in the village. Yet her father constantly rubbed her face in the fact that he was disappointed with how "weak and incapable" she was. Leading the clan was never something she particularly wanted to do. She hated the arguments, conflicts, and rules that came with the clan system. She would have loved for a way out of it. Hinata looked back up at where Naruto was sitting and watched him for a moment.

Naruto got up from the bench he was sitting on and headed around the corner towards the bathroom. He was a bit glad for the distraction; if kept watching his two friends any longer he was going to break something. When he finished, he headed back to his seat and almost dropped himself on it when he noticed something was there. There was a small box, covered in light pink and lavender wrapping, with a tag on it.

_For Naruto-kun._

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"What am I doing here?" he muttered to himself. It was a clear night, and the moon was almost full. Not perfect, but close. Naruto had been wandering around the garden for several minutes now, lost in his own thoughts. He wasn't really pleased with his reason for being here, but he did appreciate having one so that he could get out of that damned ballroom. He was tired of the looks he was getting; they were the same ones that Sasuke himself often got, though he never cared. And Naruto, quite frankly, didn't care either. It wasn't too many years ago that they had all looked at him with hard, angry eyes, just like their parents had given him.

Granted, he did turn into something worth looking at. The boy that was once known as a shrimp now easily broke 6 feet. Years of harsh taijutsu training had hardened his physical form into something that would impress most guys and cause almost any girl to swoon. The suit he was currently wearing emphasized his broad shoulders and his cut physique. His bright golden hair framed his chiseled facial features well, and his piercing blue eyes gave off an energy that was almost palpable to anyone that saw them.

He kept wandering aimlessly through the garden, fiddling with a small folded note and rubbing it between his fingers, as if to make sure that it was actually there. When he had found a small box in his seat, he almost didn't want to open it. _Probably from one of my newest admirers_, he had thought bitterly. But his curiosity had won him over, and he had been shocked to find that there wasn't anything in it. He almost crushed it in his hands right then, but he noticed that the "bottom" wasn't really the bottom; it was a note. He slipped it out and gradually unfolded it.

_Naruto-kun,_

_Please meet me in the garden beside the building. I have something important to tell you._

And that was all. It seemed to be written by someone that just couldn't keep their hand still. He wasn't really interested in whom this person was, and he certainly was in no mood to play games. But any excuse to get out of the place was good enough for him.

He was at least content that it was in the garden. He appreciated being able to walk around all of the different plants and flowers, naming them off in his head. He loved taking care of plants. It gave him a bit of pride to know that he had taken something smaller than his thumb and helped it grow into something spectacular. It was always a bit of a small wonder to him. He remembered when he had first started to develop a fascination with gardening.

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"_Ano sa, ano sa! What kind of plant is this?" Naruto shouted._

"_Oh, you like that one, do you?" the Third Hokage asked._

"_Well…, yeah, kinda," he said while scratching the back of his head. He had always heard that boys weren't supposed to like flowers, so he felt bad for admitting it. Flowers were a girl thing, but there were so many different varieties and colors that his young 8-year-old mind couldn't help but get a little excited about them all._

"_Hmm…. Well, I believe that one is called a daffodil," the Third replied._

"_Daffodil?" Naruto asked curiously. It was a very pretty yellow, and he kind of liked the odd petal arrangement of the flower. He thought it was strange to see the middle section cup out the way it did. Most of them were yellow or yellow and white, but there were a few that were orange and white._

"_Mm-hmm. They are often the first flowers to bloom in spring. They grow from large teardrop shaped seeds called bulbs. When autumn comes, the flower dies, but the bulb lives on through the winter and a new flower blooms in spring. When given as a gift, they often are thought to mean respect and admiration. They also may be called narcissi, as they are one and the same. Narcissus is simply a more general term. The narcissus is also the birthday flower of December."_

_Naruto nodded, trying to take in what the old man said. He wasn't sure he understood how they grew from giant seed things or how the seed things lived when the flower died, but he did think it was cool that they meant respect._

_Suddenly another flower caught the boy's eye. It was one of the weirdest flowers in the room. It was shaped similar to the daffodil in that the middle part stuck out, but it was ruffled and crinkled-looking, and the back petals were ruffled. It was also a deep purple color. "Ano sa, ano sa! What about that one?" Naruto asked._

"_That is an orchid. It is an interesting flower, as there are so many different types. Some don't even look like this orchid at all, but they are still orchids."_

"_Different types…?" Naruto asked questioningly. His bright blue eyes were wide with curiosity. "What do you mean 'different types'?"_

"_See that flower next to it?" the Hokage asked, pointing to a small flower with smooth round back petals and two petals in the center curled into a sphere in front of it. It was white, with just a bit of deep red around the center._

"_Yeah, what about it?" Naruto asked, trying to figure out what was so special about it._

"_That flower is also an orchid," the Hokage stated._

"_Whaa?! They don't look the same at all!" Naruto exclaimed._

_The old man next to him nodded. "You're right; they look almost nothing alike, yet they are in the same family."_

"_Same family, huh…?" Naruto muttered, bringing his head down. "Hey, old man." _

"_Hmm?"_

"_Do you think there's anyone like that with me?"_

_The old Hokage seemed a bit taken aback with this question. He thought for a moment before placing a hand on the small boy's shoulder. "You never know. There may be someone out there who seems to be almost the complete opposite of you, but deep down, you're one and the same. If you find that person, take good care of him or her. Those people are hard to find, and they can mean the difference between everything and nothing."_

_Naruto looked up at the old man for a second before letting his face break into a smile. "Okay, I'll do what I can to find that person!"_

"_Good. Now do you want take any of these home with you?"_

"_Yeah! I want that daffodil, that other orchid thing, and that plant thing over there."_

"_Are you sure you can take care of all of them?"_

"_Yeah! You bet!"_

"_Mmm. Alright. We'll get you those. And take these cards, too. They should have all the information you need on how to take care of them."_

"_Alright! I'll make sure that they look the best ever!"_

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Most of the flowers here in the garden were taken care of by the Yamanaka family, who owned the local flower shop. As such, they were placed well to accommodate maximum blooming and the best color coordination. Flowers of all kinds and colors. Red, purple, gold, orange, blue, and white were all represented in full force. Naruto was about to start his third lap around the garden when something caught his eye, something different from the colors of most of the flowers. He turned himself to look, and as soon as he did, he froze in shock. His iridescent blue eyes widened as he looked towards his visitor.

"You…" he said softly.

Naruto's breath caught in his throat. Standing right in front of him, with her hands clasped together in front of her, was Hinata. Her head was bowed slightly and angled a bit to her right. Her fingers were fidgeting slightly and seemed to be shaking. Her dark blue hair was covering most of her face, but Naruto could barely see through it enough to know she was on the verge of bursting into tears.

Naruto wanted to move. He was desperately trying to will his muscles to work, to walk closer to the woman that was standing right in front of him. But his body wasn't listening. He just stood there staring at the shy, quiet woman before him, while trying to make sense of the situation. Naruto was in a state of shock. He couldn't take his eyes off of the trembling girl that had brought him here. Though even in this state, he couldn't keep a thought from running through his brain. _She looks…wow._

Naruto was jolted out of his thoughts by a quiet sniffle. _Oh crap, she's crying._ He hated it when girls started crying around him; he had no idea what to do. Girls were usually only mad at him, and when they were, he could just take the punishment and it would be fine. Crying was different; Naruto was completely unfamiliar with being near a crying girl, and his instinct to help kicked into overdrive. He had to make sure Hinata was all right.

He carefully moved towards her, resisting the childish urge to run forward and shake her to see if she was alright. _Probably isn't going to work here,_ Naruto thought. Maturity was one of his more notable improvements in character.

However, when Hinata noticed him moving closer to her, she let out a squeak and took a step backwards, turning slightly pink-faced and keeping her head bowed. Naruto froze for a moment when she moved suddenly, but he kept walking towards her after the brief pause. When she saw he wasn't stopping, she turned her head to look at the man stepping towards her. When she did, her eyes locked with his, and her whole body stopped moving. If it wasn't for the blood rushing to her face or the pounding in her ears, she would have thought her heart stopped as well.

Their eyes remained locked as Naruto closed the distance between them, and even after he finally reached her, they just stood there for a few moments, looking into each other's eyes. Neither one said or did anything. While Hinata's mind had short-circuited, Naruto's was in overdrive. _I need to say something, dang it! Say something, say something, say something, SAY SOMETHING!_

"Umm…" Naruto started.

Hinata was jarred out of her shock by the sudden sound. Her gaze quickly turned to the ground at her side, afraid that if she looked at him much longer she was going to lose it.

"Do you want to… uh… sit down or something?" questioned Naruto hesitantly.

Hinata looked at his face again. "U-um…, s-sure, Naruto-kun," she stammered before giving a slight hint of a smile.

Naruto's face relaxed a bit and he took her hand. Blushing lightly, Hinata allowed herself to be led over to a nearby wood-slat bench. They sat down next to each other, neither one speaking a word. Naruto was looking at the sky, staring at the tremendous amount of stars above them. Hinata had her eyes on her hands in her lap, making occasional glances at the man beside her. After a few moments of silence, Hinata noticed Naruto smiling at the sky. Her face flushed a bit at this. _He's so cute when he smiles._

Naruto brought his face down to look her in the eyes, still keeping that smile on his face. "Hey Hinata, you remember when we first met?" Naruto asked, the laughter evident in his eyes. Hinata blushed red and smiled slightly at him. "Of course I remember, Naruto-kun." It was one of the few memories of her childhood that didn't pain her to think about.

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"_Ha! You'll never catch me! I'm awesome!" shouted the 6-year-old kid as he sprinted through the halls of the academy. His blonde hair was ruffling from his speed, but the two adults behind him were still gaining._

_He turned a corner and almost ran headfirst into a small, dark-haired girl in a peach kimono. Skidding to a stop, he saw a nearby closet. "Don't tell them I'm in here! Please!" the boy pleaded before ducking into the closet. _

_The young girl stared at the door for a moment before turning towards the corner in time to see two adults tear around it. "Hyuuga-san, did you see a small boy run past here? Which way did he go?"_

_The small girl didn't know what to do. She stammered out a small "U-um…" before pointing further down the hall._

"_Thank you, Hyuuga-san." He turned to his partner. "Come on, hurry. We can't let that brat get away!" he stated before rushing off._

_After a few moments the closet door was opened and a mass of blonde hair stuck out. "Are they gone?" the boy asked._

_The young Hyuuga murmured her assent and the boy stepped out of the closet, shutting the door behind him. "Whew. Thanks, that was close," the blonde said, letting his face split into a wide grin. _

_The small girl bowed her head a bit before smiling a bit. She couldn't help but get caught up in the boy's energy. After a moment, she asked the boy, "Ano, why were t-those men chasing you?"_

"_I guess they think I did something wrong," he said noncommittally._

"_Um…w-what do they t-think you did?"_

"_They think I was the one who painted shapes on the Hokage tower."_

_The girl was surprised. "Why would they t-think that?"_

"'_Cause I did," he stated with a huge grin._

_The girl's eyes widened at the brazenness of his statement before she burst into giggles._

_At the sound of her laughter, the boy's grin fell and was replaced with a look of mild shock. He listened to her quietly for a bit, and when it was apparent that she wasn't laughing at him, he smiled and rubbed the back of his neck._

"_Ano sa, ano sa! What's your name?" the blonde asked excitedly._

_The girl looked at him slightly abashedly. No one had ever asked for her name before. "Ano…I-I'm Hinata."_

"_Cool! I'm Uzumaki Naruto and I'm going to be Hokage someday!" he said, grinning wider than before, if it was possible._

_Hinata's eyes widened at this. Hokage?_

_Naruto noticed Hinata staring at him and before he could say anything else he noticed her eyes._

"_Ne, ne, you're eyes are cool, Hinata!"_

"_What?" Flushing at the compliment, she didn't know what to say. People seemed to treat her special because of something about her eyes, and her family always talked about them with pride. But Naruto just smiled and called them cool, not special or unique._

"_Yeah, they're all white and purplish. No black in the center at all. It's really cool!" Naruto seemed to radiate as he flashed his trademark grin._

_If Naruto was radiating, it was nothing compared to what Hinata was doing. She was practically blushing flames._

_While Hinata was still struggling with something to say, Naruto pressed on. "Hey, why'd you help me anyways?" he questioned the girl._

_Hinata regained her pale complexion again before answering. "U-um…," and then she stopped. Why had she helped him? She just… did._

_Before she could say that, she heard running footsteps and shouting._

"_There he is! Get away from her, you brat!" The two adults from before were sprinting back down the hallway._

_Naruto jumped at the noise. He turned to the noise and let out a yelp before taking off in the opposite direction. "See you later, Hinata!"_

"_Come back here, you! You're not getting away this time!" the grown-ups shouted before giving chase. They flew by Hinata with a quick "Excuse us, Hyuuga-san" before rounding the corner after the boy._

_Even after the sound of them running had died away, Hinata was still standing dumbstruck in the hallway, trying to make sense of what had just happened._

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"Oh wow, did I ever get in trouble after that," Naruto said with a small chuckle.

Hinata giggled at the memory, too. "I'd never been more disoriented in my life before that point."

Naruto laughed again; Hinata loved that laugh. It wasn't forced or pained, like most of his laughter recently. It made her flush just a bit.

Naruto just sat back and stared at the stars again. Hinata looked at them as well. She would have been perfectly content to just sit here with him for the rest of her life, even if it was in perfect silence. Naruto, however, had just remembered something.

"Ne, Hinata, what did you have to tell me that was so important?"

Hinata jerked her head away from the stars and stared wide-eyed at Naruto's face. She began radiating with a new level of redness, which, considering the records she had broken in that category up to this point, was pretty impressive.

"U-um… well…"

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A/N: So, how was it? If you made it this far, that most likely means you read it, and that in itself is a compliment. But again, any reviews or thoughts on the quality of this would be deeply appreciated.

Thanks, guys.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I'd just like to say a quick general thank you to those who reviewed my last chapter. My update schedule is questionable right now, but I think this is only going to have a few more chapters anyway. Though I may stretch it out with a prologue. I'm not sure at this point.

Also, I hope the use of flashbacks isn't bothersome. It's how I'll be telling the story. The flashbacks _are_ the story for the most part, with the present time addressing what happened. I kinda like it that way.

Now, let the story commence!

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"I-I… I j-just…" Hinata began staring at her hands, which were fidgeting rapidly. She shifted her position and started to tremble slightly. Her eyes kept darting around, looking for something to focus on. She couldn't do it; she was on the verge of a mental breakdown just sitting next to Naruto. She was lost in her world; a world filled with fear. Fear of pain, fear of loss, fear of rejection. She couldn't find a way out.

"Are you alright?"

Naruto's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. Still trembling, she looked at Naruto, his blue eyes full of concern. Looking at them, Hinata's trembling gradually ceased as her fearful mind was calmed, and she nodded.

"You don't have to tell me yet if you don't want to."

Hinata felt life in her again. "U-um… hai. Thank you, N-Naruto-kun." She leaned against the back of the bench and let out a sigh. She looked at Naruto and sat up when she saw him shaking his head.

"Please don't go back to the old you," he said as he turned to face her.

Hinata recoiled slightly at his words. "What?"

"Don't go back to the old you. This last year you've changed so much for the better. I don't like it when you get that fear in your eye; it looks like you're staring Death in the face or something." Naruto made sure to keep eye contact with the woman next to him. "You showed me the true Hinata last year, didn't you? Where'd she go just then?"

Hinata lowered her head and stared at her hands in her lap. She remembered all right. It was as fresh in her mind as if it had happened last night.

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"_Come on, Hinata, get up!" the blonde shinobi shouted._

_Hinata rolled from her back onto her stomach before pushing herself back up in the center of the clearing. The two were out in one of the many forested practice areas around the village and had spent the better part of the day working with each other on their respective specialties before taking some time to spar with each other. Things had started to go downhill for Hinata from there. She was covered in scratches and was bruised from the many times she had been hit by Naruto and was quickly losing confidence in her ability to keep up. Straightening up, she looked him in the eyes. "H-hai, Naruto-kun."_

"_Don't stutter in front of me. I'm you're opponent. I should be fearing your every word, your every intent, your every action. You can't give the appearance of weakness in front of an enemy, unless you're trying to trick them. And you aren't trying to trick me."_

_Hinata nodded. "Hai."_

_Naruto gave the slightest of grins and adjusted his chuunin vest. "Good. Now come at me again with everything you've got!"_

_Hinata took off. She struck out violently with her Jyuuken, which Naruto forced to the side before counter-attacking with a kick to her side. She did a graceful side flip over the attacking leg and came down with a low sweep kick. No good, as Naruto pushed off of his planted foot and turned it into a side kick. Hinata was sent flying backwards and landed sprawled out on her back again._

"_Hinata, that wasn't your best. Not even close. Don't let me go easy on you. I want everything you've got."_

_The Hyuuga heir squeezed her eyes shut in a grimace as she climbed back to her feet. Taking a moment to catch her breath and regain her balance, she settled back into her stance. It wasn't the same as what her father had taught her; Naruto suggested she alter it a bit to suit her body type more. The dark-haired kunoichi was keeping her center of gravity higher to better facilitate her mobility and flexibility. She had to admit that the changes were effective, but she still didn't feel she could keep up with the blonde man standing across the clearing from her._

_It was a good thing that Naruto was the determined type of guy. Otherwise he would have been seriously bothered by Hinata's constant self-degradation. He had been trying everything he could think of to pull her self-confidence up and get her to fight her best. He quickly stopped trying to go easier on her and let her deal more hits; it had taken the woman almost no time to figure out he was letting her win and had done more harm than good. He tried complimenting her every strength and success, which helped a little, but she had shot down every positive word with a negative response of her own. Now he was trying to push her verbally, constantly demanding her to give her every effort._

_Activating her Byakugan, Hinata rushed at Naruto full speed and pulled a flip-twist over his head as he attempted to counter her advance with a high arching kick. She landed facing his back and launched a Jyuuken strike aimed between his shoulder blades. Naruto kept his body moving with the momentum from his kick and twisted out of the way of the kunoichi's strike. He made to grab her extended arm, but she ducked low and spun into a sweep kick aimed for the blonde's ankles. Naruto avoided it by back-flipping into a handspring and landing a few yards away, only to be met with a pair of some of the scariest eyes he had seen. Pure white, pupil-less eyes with veins bulging out on either side provide an almost unrivaled intimidation factor, especially from close range like this. _

_The blonde shinobi narrowly avoided a full palm strike to the gut by pushing off into another back-flip and landing on the trunk of a tree, adhering to it with his chakra. During this motion, he flew through several handseals, and after landing on the tree, he released a chakra-infused ball of air from his lungs straight at Hinata. The Hyuuga chuunin didn't react in time and got blasted hard towards the ground. She bounced and rolled backwards along the ground before coming to a hard, slamming stop on the ground on the other side of the clearing, flat on her back._

_Naruto leapt off his perch on the tree and walked back towards the center of the clearing. "That was better, Hinata, but I know you can do more."_

"_I'm sorry, Naruto-kun."_

"_For what?"_

"_I'm s-sorry for wasting your time."_

_Naruto shook his head. "Hinata, don't start this now."_

"_I-I'm not good enough; I'm h-holding you back." The young woman's eyes were pressed shut, and she was trying with all her might to block out the sick feeling in her stomach. She really was a failure; there was no way a girl like her could keep up with _him

"_You are good enough or else I wouldn't be sparring with you," Naruto argued back. He was getting a little more than frustrated with the way she kept beating herself up._

"_You s-should just find someone else to…to train with. I don't even p-put up enough of a challenge t-to be worth the time."_

"_That's not true."_

"_Y-Yes it is. I-I'm sorry for m-making you work with s-someone so m-much weaker than…than you."_

"_Hinata, stop acting like this." Naruto was fighting hard not to explode at this point._

"_I can't do anything for you. I'm not capable of…"_

"_DAMN IT, HINATA, WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU!?"_

_Hinata's eyes jolted wide open. Her world collapsed around her and she felt her heart tear into pieces. Her stomach twisted up and her vision clouded with tears. She couldn't take it anymore. Even Naruto thought she couldn't do anything. The one person in the world whose opinion mattered most to her thought she was a failure. Her entire being felt like it had been shattered. Feeling all this pain at once, Hinata rolled to the side, pulled her legs up, and curled into a ball. She felt every sob tearing at her insides as her eyes released their water into the ground. She was completely worthless._

_Naruto stood staring in shock at Hinata's huddled form. Why was she like this? "Hinata, why do you keep lying to yourself like that?"_

_Hinata's sobs gently quieted. "What?"_

"_If you keep telling yourself that you're a failure, then that's what you'll be. You constantly tear yourself down for the silliest of things. Why?"_

_The dark haired girl's only response was to sniffle._

"_Hinata, you're not incompetent, you're not incapable, and you're not weak. Stop telling yourself that you are."_

_The Hyuuga woman didn't move. "What m-makes you so sure t-that I'm not?" the girl asked, almost accusingly._

"_What do you mean?"_

_Hinata had her face buried in her hands. "What makes you so sure that I'm not weak? How do you know I'm not a failure? I've never done anything great or even anything good. I'm not even worth speaking to!"_

"_Hinata, that's a lie. Don't tell me that you're a failure. Don't tell me that you haven't done anything great. And don't _ever_ tell me that you're not worth speaking to." Naruto paused before heaving a sigh and stared at the sky. "You've done more for me as an individual than almost anyone else in the village. You believed in me back when I fought Neji, when few others thought I'd survive. You're words pushed me to do everything I could to beat him. You did what no one else could; you pushed me to do the impossible. Was that worthless?"_

_The girl didn't move._

_Naruto shook his head. "Where'd the real Hinata go?"_

_The Hyuuga heir pulled her face out of her hands and turned her head to look at him with wide eyes. "What?"_

"_Where did the real Hinata go? The one that never stayed down, despite two critical blows to the heart. The one that had eyes that almost burned a hole through Neji. The one that wouldn't take back her words, because that was her nindo. Where did she go?"_

_Hinata turned her head to face the ground again, clutching the collar of her hoodie. She sniffled again._

_Naruto continued, "Where is the girl with eyes that burned with a white fire? Eyes that practically screamed that the only way for one to win was to make sure that the other never got back up. Eyes that raged with a fury that could only be described as unstoppable. You showed Neji those eyes. I want you to show them to me. I want to see the Hinata that can change destiny with her will, the one that not even fate can stop. I want to meet that woman. Where is she?"_

_Hinata squeezed her eyes shut. Neither one spoke or moved, letting the seconds tick away. Then Hinata rolled to her stomach and pushed herself up. She stood there for a moment, panting and looking at the ground. Bringing her hand up to her face, she flicked the last of her tears away with her thumb. Then she straightened and looked dead on at Naruto, byakugan burning full force. Energy was radiating from her as she took her adapted Hyuuga stance._

_Naruto grinned smugly in anticipation as he took his stance. "There she is," he whispered._

_Hinata powered forward with a chakra-enhanced lunge. Naruto didn't have time to think before he was distracted by the seemingly thousand of blows assaulting him._

_Four hours later Hinata fell onto her back in the middle of the clearing. Her muscles wouldn't move anymore. She used every ounce of her strength in that match. That four hour long match. Even though she was on the ground, she smiled, because she heard the thud nearby that told her she wasn't the only one completely exhausted._

_Naruto had never been so dead tired. No one had ever managed to make him this exhausted. He was always the only one who could make himself collapse from exhaustion, giant frogs notwithstanding. Yet here he was, the stamina king, flat out on his back in the clearing, unable to get up. He hadn't lost, but that wasn't why he was smiling. _

_Both of their jackets lay off to the side, having been taken off in the first place because each had used the other's garment as a hand-hold. Neither was willing to give up an advantage, so they got rid of them. Not that they were cold anyway; each was drenched in sweat._

_If anyone had been present to watch the match, they would have been entranced by the raw power given off by the pair. Grace and power were colliding head on with each other in a death match so incredible that it would have rooted any spectators to the spot. They would have walked away amazed, not quite daring to believe that what they had just witnessed was real. But the participants in the beautifully deadly fight didn't if anyone was there to see it. They were too exhausted and elated to care._

_Naruto turned his head to face the woman flopped on the ground next to him and said between gasps of air, "That…was awesome."_

_Hinata turned to face him for a second and smiled._

_Naruto looked back up at the sky before saying, "We need… to train like that again."_

_Hinata nodded before succumbing to exhaustion and falling asleep, the smile still evident on her face._

_Naruto glanced back over to the woman near him. Seeing her smile, he grinned before falling asleep himself. They slept through the entire night and most of the morning._

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Hinata let a small smile show as she slipped out of her reverie. She turned her head to him and said, "Some things are still hard to talk about, no matter how strong you are."

Naruto nodded, understanding her double meaning. She knew about his secret; he had told her a short time after that first four hour sparring match. He decided it was best to let her off the hook for now. They could come back to it later.

The spiky haired shinobi turned his attention towards the moon. It was usually something that he looked at for comfort, often losing himself in its soothing light. Yet now he kept seeing something else in the moon. Something that was also bright and pale, except with just a hint of lavender….

Naruto shook off the recent vision. It was something that had continuously plagued him for several months; he felt like he had been seeing them for an eternity. Every time he saw the moon, the bottom of his ramen bowl after he'd slurped it dry, or just anything remotely round and white, he kept seeing _them_. It had gotten so bad that he kept envisioning them every time he shut his eyes.

White orbs that would have seemed dead to most had actually contained a hidden depth that he was quickly losing himself in. He didn't feel like he could go anywhere but deeper until he found every secret they held. It made him sick to his stomach thinking about it though; he knew he was letting himself get in too deep. His mind told him to back away, to let go of his feelings and give up on them because he had no chance. He couldn't though; his will to move forward overpowered his will to pull back.

Naruto peeled his gaze from the moon to halt the string of uncomfortable thoughts. He didn't need a pained expression to make the situation any more awkward than it was at the moment. Unfortunately, fate isn't always kind; sometimes it has a sick sense of humor. As Naruto turned away from the moon, his eyes met with the same ones he had been daydreaming of. The blond was fully unprepared for the sight of them and halfway leapt out of his skin. This in turn caused the young lady next to him to jump and blush frantically. They both turned their heads away from each other, one slightly red, and the other glowing enough to put the nearby garden lights to shame.

The subsequent awkward silence continued for a few moments before the pair finally calmed down and turned their heads to stare at their own feet, Naruto abashedly scratching the back of his head while Hinata allowed herself to return to her usual pale complexion.

Naruto, master of timing that he was, suddenly started quietly laughing to himself. The situation itself was almost too funny for him, and it had reminded him of a past event that never failed to make the man laugh. The memory had a different effect for the kunoichi next to him.

"Hey, Hinata. Do you remember the first time you tried to help me improve my chakra control?"

The pale-eyed woman looked at him for a moment, confused as to what event he was asking about. Suddenly her eyes shot open and her face regained it's now common redness. Why did he have to ask about _that_ memory?

"Y-yes, I… do remember." That was an understatement. Every moment of it had been burned into her brain; it wasn't everyday something like _that_ happened.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"_Not so much, Naruto-kun."_

_Naruto eased up on the amount of chakra he was controlling in his hand. He was trying to create a small circular wind in his palm, doing his best to make it as gentle as possible. He was kneeling on the grass in a small clearing in the woods. This particular training area was nice because it was rarely used, but it also had a small river running beside it, which made it convenient for staying long periods. And with water also being a good training aid, Naruto chose to come to this spot frequently._

_Hinata was kneeling beside of him, carefully watching Naruto's progress. He needed to improve his control, and the shinobi was more than happy to have Hinata help him. It wasn't often he had someone there to help him improve; most of his friends were too busy. It didn't bother him too much, though; they helped when they could. And since Naruto usually spent every day training himself to complete exhaustion, he didn't expect anyone to try to keep up with him._

_But even with the Hyuuga girl's help, he was having a lot of trouble keeping the whirl of air in his hand from becoming a swirling vortex of powerful gusts. Most people found it easy to use low amounts of chakra, but Naruto was a bit of a unique case. It was even harder using an element that he was naturally attuned to, and he was pretty sure that Hinata knew that. Every time he started getting frustrated she would offer a bit of advice or some words of encouragement. And whenever she did, he would feel his aggravation wash away from him._

_Hinata, for her part, was doing an exceptional job helping Naruto keep his chakra under control. She was staying remarkably focused on her task of assisting Naruto, often using her Byakugan to provide even more intuitive advice. Despite all of this, it was still somewhat slow progress and the two ninja had been working for several hours._

_Finally, Naruto managed to maintain a gentle spin of air above his palm for a few minutes without it lashing out violently. Releasing his chakra, the blond chuunin leaned forward and rested his hands on his knees._

"_You know, it's almost sad that I can create no less than a thousand copies of myself, yet I can barely manage a light breeze in my palm," Naruto said, releasing an exasperated sigh._

_Hinata shook her head. "You just have to work backwards. Most shinobi spend their whole lives trying to reach your chakra capacity; you just need to spend some time building control."_

_Naruto just leaned back on his hands and looked at the sky. "Yeah, I guess that's true."_

"_You're certainly improving, though. You haven't seriously lost control of your chakra like you did those first few tries."_

_Naruto chuckled a bit at the thought of his first efforts. "Yeah, it definitely wasn't fun getting knocked several feet backwards every time I tried to make a gust of wind." _

_Hinata smiled as she caught his change in attitude. "But you eventually got it right. And this was just one day. I'm sure it will get much more natural as you practice."_

_Naruto sat up and let his face break into his characteristic grin. "Yep, it's a lot easier with you helping me. You'll have to come out here with me more often."_

_The dark-haired girl's face flushed at the thought of spending more time alone with Naruto. She had planned to say more, but her train of thought was instantly derailed at the sight of Naruto's smile. Curse his infernal cuteness._

_Naruto stood up, dusted the dirt off of his legs, and stretched a bit. "Well, since I finally got it after all this time, why don't we do some pursuit training to loosen up?"_

_Hinata looked up at him with a confused expression. "Pursuit training?"_

"_Yep." Naruto looked down at the kunoichi and smiled. He tapped her leg with his foot and said, "You're it."_

_And he was gone._

_Hinata's shocked face brightened as she broke into giggles. "All right, Naruto, if that's how it's going to be…" she muttered before taking off after the blond._

_It was a few minutes before Hinata caught sight of her target with her Byakugan. He had led her on one hell of a chase so far, and Hinata was sure that all of the times he had been chased as a kid because of his pranks, which he still hadn't outgrown, had seriously paid off. But she wasn't deterred, and she managed to significantly close the distance before Naruto noticed her. He looked over his shoulder and let out a yelp before increasing his speed._

_Hinata was silently cursing his stamina as she pushed herself to keep up. He sure knew how to lose himself in the terrain. The kunoichi knew she wouldn't have been able to follow him if not for her Byakugan, but she still had to struggle through brush, vines, and general foliage as she gradually gained ground. Tearing ahead at full speed, Hinata finally managed to catch up to him, only to watch him puff into smoke as soon as she touched him. _

"_He led me through all that for a bunshin? Oh he is DEFINITELY going to get it now."_

_The real Naruto smirked when he recovered the memories of his banished clone. "Heh, so she did fall for it."_

"_Fall for what, Naruto-kun?!" a voice shouted behind him._

_Naruto almost tripped on the branch that he was leaping to when he heard her voice behind him. He turned to look, and sure enough, there she was, leaping after him. Naruto's shocked face bent into another smirk. "I knew I shouldn't have taught you Kage Bunshin."_

_Hinata smiled while she continued to gain ground. "It's hard to run from four pairs of Byakugan eyes," she said._

"_So are you a clone, too? Or are you the real thing?"_

"_Oh I'm the real one. I knew you'd go this way. I just sent the others to make you think otherwise."_

"_Oh really? And how did you know I would go this direction?" Naruto asked, pushing more chakra into his legs and ducking through more foliage._

"_This is the direction of Ichiraku's," she replied, gracefully flowing through the brush after Naruto._

_The blond Hokage-to-be laughed at this. "I'm not really that predictable, am I? I'll lose rank at this rate!"_

_Hinata laughed as well, but she decided that this chase needed to end; she didn't want to be exhausted when it was her turn, after all. She created a beam of chakra in her right hand as if performing her Shugo Hakke technique, but she used it to cut off the branch that Naruto was about to land on. _

_Naruto wasn't exactly prepared for that, and he quickly tried to prepare for his impact on the ground. Hinata, however, just noticed that they were headed for the same branch that she had just cut. She had an uncomfortable feeling that she wasn't going to like the upcoming events._

_Naruto landed hard on the ground and his momentum forced him to roll forward before ending up on his back. Hinata managed to avoid most of the damage that would have been inflicted by the ground, but her inertia also forced her to roll forward before landing hard on her stomach._

_Right on top of Naruto._

_Hinata had managed to stop herself with her hands when she landed, and Naruto instinctively grabbed her waist to prevent her from slamming full force into him. The result was Hinata staring straight into Naruto's eyes, their faces barely more than an inch apart. And despite Naruto trying to slow her fall, Hinata's entire weight was on the full length of Naruto's body. _

_Hinata didn't know what to do. She wanted to get off of him and apologize profusely for the accident. And she might have, if there wasn't a deeper part of her that knew that there was nowhere else she'd rather be. She could feel his warmth as she lay there, and his slow, deep breathing added a continuous and changing pressure that caused chills to run down her spine. She could smell him, too. It was a subtle mix of ramen and pine trees, which she found to be surprisingly wonderful, and it aided in shutting down her mental processes further. _

_And to make it all worse, she was inches away from the most amazing pair of cerulean-blue eyes. Hinata felt like she was being pulled towards them, her willpower gone in an instant. Her arms felt like they were weakening, and she was gradually becoming more incapable of supporting herself. But she wasn't thinking about that; all she wanted was to move just a little bit closer to the powerful eyes before her…_

_Naruto was confused. While that was not an uncommon state of mind for the shinobi to be in, this was a whole different thing entirely. For starters, he had never been this close to a girl. Oh, he had been around his fair share of women, having traveled with Jiraiya, and had even transformed into a girl for the occasional prank. But this? This was different._

_Her _entire_ body was pressed against him. And he was slowly starting to notice every detailed and sculpted curve that her body had. Her hair had fallen around her head, and it had settled lightly on his face. The subtle feeling of it sent a rush through his entire body as his breathing started to pick up. He almost thought he felt her _shiver_, which caused his hands to unconsciously clench her waist. _

_Then he noticed it; it had started when her hair fell on his face, but he finally registered her scent. Flowers. Lots of different flowers. His favorite flowers, in fact: lavender, jasmine, orchid, lilac, and many more. He was drinking it in, and he was getting fully intoxicated by it. His chest grew tighter still, and his breathing became more rapid. And if he hadn't noticed her eyes before, he did now. He had always heard that Hyuuga eyes were white. But her eyes…weren't. They were a delicate shade of lavender, actually. A very beautiful tint that destroyed any urges to blink._

_Her eyes were starting to send a feeling through him that was akin to fear. He knew what it was like to be terrified of eyes, and this wasn't the same. But he was still somewhat scared. Naruto didn't want to move or look away, and he was afraid of what that meant. A piece of him was lost to her eyes, trapped in their endless depths, a part he knew would never return. This fear reached its peak when he felt the pressure from her body increase as her arms gradually gave way. He couldn't take anymore of this._

"_Umm… I…uh…guess I'm it now."_

_Hinata practically flew off of him and she stood there, blushing hard enough to almost set the nearby plants on fire. And Naruto was almost as red as she was. Hinata just bowed her head, rapidly fidgeting with her hands. She nodded vigorously before taking off, hoping to hide her embarrassment for at least a short while._

_Naruto just lay there. His breathing started to normalize and the redness left his face. Once he was sure his body was working normally, he sat up. He thought of what just happened, and all of his previous emotions surged back through him. He couldn't suppress a slight groan at the memory. "Crap. I think I really like her…"_

_He stood up and brushed the dirt off of his back before taking off after the woman. _

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Hinata couldn't help but blush furiously at the memory of it. She could still recall everything: sight, smell, and touch. And it drove her _crazy_.

Naruto still couldn't help but laugh at the awkwardness of the whole ordeal. But underneath his laughter he relived every feeling that it had stirred up inside him. He really did think the whole situation was funny to look back on, but he was mostly wondering how he had managed to get in so deep.

Hinata turned to look at him and questioned, "Why did you ask about that, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto just shrugged. "I don't know. I just remembered it and I wondered if you remembered it, too."

Hinata didn't look away from him, but her hands started to fidget frantically. He remembered it? Why did he…? Oh crap, that had to be ridiculously awkward. Was he bothered by it? Was he still annoyed that she hadn't moved away fast enough?

This train of thought ended when she saw Naruto smiling at her. She smiled a bit in response, but she caught something in his expression that seemed like he wanted something. Or wanted to _know_ something. It was making her a little uncomfortable.

"Hey, Hinata-chan, I wanted to ask you about something."

Hinata's eyes widened at the honorific and the way he looked as he said that. Oh crap. This had better not be what she was thinking it was.

* * *

A/N: Well, there it is. Two chapters down. Probably only a couple more to go, depending on inspiration. I hope you all liked it. I feel a bit mixed about this one. Oh well, it's over and done, and I feel pretty good.

Reviews and advice are greatly appreciated, the latter being extremely helpful. Thanks to all those who read this chapter. You guys rock.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Sorry it's been so long guys. I had to deal with a hell of a lot of crap over the past several months, coupled with the fact that I get no inspiration while I'm home over the summer. You probably all need a quick refresher as to what's going on, so you might want to reread the last bit of the last chapter to remember what's going on. ;; (And no, this isn't a cheap attempt to get more views.)

Anyway, with luck I should be able to get more chapters out faster. I know they aren't long enough to justify waiting close to half a year (ugh, it makes me sick saying that; I feel terrible about it). But you're here for the story, and not my whining. So, here you are!

* * *

Hinata could feel her breathing increase at his statement. "Yes, Naruto-kun? What do you… what do you want to know?" she asked cautiously.

"NARUTO!" a voice called out in the distance.

Naruto and Hinata both jumped at the noise, but when Naruto registered who it was he just sighed.

"NARUTO!!!" the voice shouted again.

"Over here, Sakura!" Naruto yelled back.

Sakura's face appeared as she moved around a rose bush with flowers that perfectly matched her pink hair. Her red dress hung a bit loose on her frame, but it matched her curves. The neck was cut in such a way that it covered her right shoulder but kept her left shoulder open. The sleeve on her right arm was very wide and flowed down to her wrist so that it swayed as she walked. The dress fell down to just past her knees, hanging loosely like her sleeve. She was wearing small red short-heeled sandals reminiscent of Tsunade's heels, only with thinner straps. She had a small, round diamond pendant around her neck with a thin gold chain hanging close to her neck. It didn't look cheap.

As soon as she saw Naruto, she opened her mouth as if she were bearing official news, but quickly stopped. Her mouth didn't quite shut, though. In fact, it dropped just a bit more.

Naruto waited a few moments for her to speak, and when it became apparent that she wasn't, he asked, "Are you gonna tell me what you need?"

The comment was enough to make Sakura close her mouth, but her lips soon bent into a smirk, which made Naruto and Hinata both nervous. There was no safety from that smirk. "What are you two doing?" Sakura asked suggestively.

"Talking. Why?" Naruto responded.

"You seem like you're doing more than talking," Sakura replied, smirk still evident on her face. Naruto was getting just a bit annoyed with it. Hinata turned red at the implications of doing things she'd, granted, been dreaming of for years, but Sakura didn't notice. Hinata did that a lot when things were implied about Naruto.

"We aren't, but it looks like you were," Naruto stated in a bit of a clipped tone.

"What makes you say that?"

"The back of your hair is messed up."

Sakura just cocked an eyebrow at that. Now it was Naruto's turn to smirk. "You know, like when someone has been _playing_ with it or something." Sakura's face started to show that she could see what Naruto was hinting at. Then the blonde's grin grew almost evil. "You're lips are also red, like they've been rubbed _raw_ or something. Is everything alright?" Naruto asked, making that last statement as innocent as possible.

Sakura's face started to turn about as red as her dress. Naruto was dying on the inside; it was hard to keep that much laughter contained. But he wasn't about to stop there. It had been way too long since Naruto had the opportunity to get back at Sakura with a little friendly revenge.

Still keeping the angelically innocent expression on his face but mixing in a little concern, Naruto asked, "Sakura, are you okay? You're face is starting to turn all red. You aren't sick, are you?"

Sakura's face flushed a bit more, and that was all it took for Naruto to lose it. He was doubled over with laughter on the bench, holding his stomach, while Hinata was watching him, a bit flushed herself. Sakura finally caught on to what Naruto was doing and struck him with a light punch on the back of his head before letting her face break into a grin. She'd grown accustomed to his antics a couple years ago, which she appreciated more than him trying to ask her out on dates. She did wish that he was a bit less observant of uncomfortable details, though.

After Naruto finally regained his composure, he asked, "So what did you come here for, Sakura?"

"Oh yeah. Naruto, Tsunade wants to talk to you about something. She mentioned 'official business' and wouldn't tell me any more."

"Does she want to talk _now_?" Naruto didn't mind talking to Tsunade, but he didn't exactly feel like leaving where he was.

"No. But she does want to see you in her office at noon tomorrow."

Naruto sighed. "Alright. I'll be there. Let baa-chan know, okay?"

Sakura just shook her head, exasperated. "You're the only one who can get away with that…. But I'll tell her. See you later, Naruto," she finished, before turning to leave.

"Later. Oh, hey, Sakura-chan?" Sakura turned to look at Naruto, who was smiling a bit. "Nice dress. I'm sure Sasuke likes it as well."

Sakura ducked her head, a small smile and light blush evident on her face. She gave a quick, shy nod before disappearing behind the nearby plants. Naruto just shook his head, grinning, while Hinata looked at him with curiosity evident in her eyes.

"Um, Naruto, you don't seem bothered that Sakura is, um…, with Sasuke. You don't mind?"

Naruto turned to look at her and cocked his head. "What do you mean? I'm happy for both of them. Sakura finally straightened out that nut job," he said with a wide grin.

Hinata fidgeted with her hands and swallowed before pressing on. "Well, I mean, you always used to like her. So, um, I just thought that… that it would bother you."

Naruto looked at her for a moment before shaking his head and looking at the sky. "Heh. Perceptive as usual."

Hinata just kept her eyes locked on Naruto. She wanted to hear his explanation more than anything in the world. If he'd lost interest in Sakura, that was one less obstacle in her path. Then maybe she could move his interest elsewhere…

Naruto glanced out of the corner of his eye and noticed how focused her attention was on him. Clearly he wasn't getting out of this with just a couple generic words. He gave a deep sigh and turned his attention to his feet.

"You're right; I did like Sakura. A lot, actually. Not that I ever really figured that I had a chance. She was just one of those girls that guys fell for. That made her a challenge to me, and I kinda like challenges." Naruto paused for a moment and glanced at Hinata. She was still intently focused on him and was hardly even blinking.

He turned his head back and stared out in front of him, eyes focused on nothing. "I thought I was making progress when we actually started to become friends. If she did hit me, it was because of some stupid comment I made and it was often a light hit. But I was starting to notice a change in my mind. I was beginning to just want her as a friend, nothing more. I'd never had a family, but my teammates were quickly becoming like family to me. Sakura was my sister, and Sasuke was my brother. And that's what I wanted. That doesn't mean that if Sakura had asked me out I would have said no, but I decided to let it go and just enjoy the fact that I had a surrogate family to care for me."

Naruto looked at Hinata with his cerulean eyes before finishing. "I don't like Sakura the same way that I used to. That's why I can be happy that she and Sasuke are together. Makes my life more fun, though; now I've got plenty of material I can use to pick on them," he added with a wide grin.

Hinata giggled quietly. His prankster spirit got on a lot of other people's nerves, but she had always found it endearing. He was learning to keep it under control, but he knew how to have fun. His creativity seemed to have no limit. She wondered if he could use that creativity in other ways…

_No! Bad Hinata,_ she thought to herself. Best to keep that line of thought tucked away in the back of her mind. She didn't want to start blushing again, especially without an obvious reason. Or at least a semi-obvious reason, in Naruto's case.

"Well, I guess it's good that you moved on," Hinata replied, trying to keep as calm and rational as she could. She paused for a bit before moving on. "So is there anyone you like now instead?"

Naruto's eyes flicked back to Hinata before staring straight out, glazing over a bit from thought. "Maybe. Maybe not. I'm not really sure. Sometimes I think I am, sometimes I think it's just me taking things the wrong way." He turned to glance at Hinata before asking, "Why do you want to know?"

The shy girl next to him was caught off guard by the question, but she still managed to put together a decent reply before the pause became too evident. "Well, it is Valentine's Day; isn't that what everyone's thinking about?"

Naruto couldn't help rolling his eyes at that. "Of course it's what everyone's thinking about. They talk about it so much that I'm sick of it," he said, his voice carrying a razor sharp edge to it. "That's why I hate this day so much. And all the weeks that lead up to it, for that matter."

The woman sitting next to him couldn't quell her curiosity, finally asking, "How can you hate today so much?"

The blonde just shook his head before he began to explain. "I don't have anyone to celebrate today with. I never have. It's always been me looking at everyone else, with their boyfriends and girlfriends, talking about how much fun this day always is. It's not like I can spend today with anyone. I certainly can't spend it with Iruka, like other holidays; he's got his own agenda for today." Naruto chuckled at how his old teacher always got so flustered around this one girl. Naruto hardly ever stopped giving him a hard time about it. And he got to pull one of his best pranks on Iruka; he had to remember to tell Hinata about it.

Hinata was slightly taken aback at this. "You mean you've _never_ had anyone to spend the day with? _Ever?_"

Naruto looked at Hinata, eyes downcast. "Nope. Most girls always seemed to like someone else better. Plus I never really had the time to hang out with any of them, since Kakashi, baa-chan, and ero-sennin liked to keep me so busy. Eventually it just got to the point where I stopped trying. Never seemed to do me much good anyway," he said with a sigh.

"So have you just been waiting for someone else to make the first move or something?" Hinata asked, trying her hardest to avoid stuttering.

"Eh, I guess so. If someone was interested in me, and I was kinda interested, too, I wouldn't have said no. Mostly I really just don't want to spend this holiday alone anymore, you know?" he said, looking to the quiet woman next to him for understanding.

Hinata blushed a little before letting her desires get the best of her. "So, would you, um…, like to spend Valentine's Day together next year? That way you wouldn't have to be alone." _What the…? Did I just ask that?! _she thought frantically.

Naruto was a bit taken aback at this. "You'd do that for me?"

Hinata managed to start breathing again in time to say, "Well, we are friends, right? You just want to someone to spend Valentine's Day with, right? So, you… wouldn't mind spending it with me, right?"

Naruto brightened up so much it felt to Hinata like it was dawn. "That would be great! Now I won't be bored off my ass next year!" He paused long enough to calm down before asking, "So, you're sure you're going to be free on that day? I don't want to be in the way if you get a boyfriend or something."

Hinata quickly nodded her head. "I'm sure I'll be free. Don't worry," she added with a smile. "Are you sure that you'll be free?"

Naruto laughed at that. "Are you kidding? Of course I'll be free. I don't pay any attention really to all those people who only like me since I beat Orochimaru."

Hinata flushed at the idea of spending Valentine's Day with Naruto, even if it was a year away. But she made sure to stay focused on the topic at hand. "That was the most scared I've been in a long time. You spent almost a week in the hospital, even with your increased healing."

Naruto shook his head. "That was just because Tsunade wanted me to get some rest. I was fine after a few days."

"But still, a few days for you would be like a few months for others," Hinata admonished.

"Yeah, yeah. I still didn't need to stay there the whole time," Naruto said, brushing the comment off with a wave of his hand.

"Well, can you at least tell me what happened? I couldn't see everything from where I was; I was a bit preoccupied."

"Yeah, sure. It's kind of a long story though. You sure you want to hear it?" Naruto asked.

Hinata blushed slightly before responding, "I always love listening to your stories, Naruto-kun."

_Maybe I can figure out why he seemed to change his attitude towards me so much,_ she thought.

* * *

A/N: Well, there you go. One new chapter open for critiques, comments, and flames. I probably deserve a little bit of flaming for taking so long. And reviews are always loved. I don't ignore anyone who takes the time to tell me what they think of my chapters. I enjoy sharing my writing, and whether it's good or bad, I like knowing what you think of it.

Thanks guys. You all rock.


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